Israel’s High Court of Justice issued an interim order Tuesday freezing a recently passed law that would suspend the arrests of yeshiva bochurim who have not reported for military service.

The government chose not to be represented at the hearing. Cabinet Secretary Yossi Fuchs nevertheless submitted a written position arguing that the court should not intervene, saying, “The state needs Chareidi recruits, not Chareidi detainees.”

Attorney Yitzchak Bart, representing the Knesset’s legal adviser, told the court that while his office is ordinarily required to defend the validity of laws passed by the Knesset, this law had been enacted in violation of a Basic Law and the Knesset’s own procedural rules.

“There apparently is no choice but to strike down the law,” Bart said, adding that the Knesset’s legal advisers had raised objections throughout the legislative process.

A representative of the attorney general, attorney Aner Hellman, argued that the law was invalid and discriminatory, saying it failed to meet even one element of the constitutional limitations clause. He said the legal concerns had been clear from the start and that a law creating unequal criminal enforcement could not remain in effect even temporarily.

The Knesset’s legal counsel had already informed the court that serious flaws occurred during the law’s passage and that the legislative process failed to meet the heightened standard required under the circumstances. The attorney general, Gali Baharav-Miara, also called for the law to be struck down, describing it as defective and harmful.

The measure was approved by the Knesset approximately two weeks ago by a vote of 58–54. It would have suspended arrests of full-time yeshiva students until November 30, after the upcoming Knesset elections.

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